iHelp café | Archives | 2015

What to do When Computers Are Down

Date October 29, 2015

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Posted by Jacqui on January 26, 2015

All tech teachers have experienced a day when the computers don’t work. You jiggle the mouse and nothing. You reboot and the screens remain dark. You know how to tap dance when the internet won’t connect (use software instead) or a particular program refuses to load (go to your Symbaloo page of alternatives).

But what happens when the computers themselves are down–a systemic virus, or a site-wide upgrade that went bad? What do you do with the eager faces who tumble across your threshold ready for their once-a-week computer time? You need something that ties into technology without using it.

Here are some ideas:

Discuss digital citizenship

This is a topic that needs to be discussed every year, repetitively. When I teach digital citizenship, it always includes lots of back-and-forth conversation and surprised faces. Students have no idea that the right to use online resources includes responsibilities. In getting that point across, I end up answering endless questions, many that revolve around, ‘But no one knows who I am’, ‘But how can I be caught‘.

Use tech downtime to delve into this topic. Gather in a circle and talk about concepts like ‘digital footprint’, ‘plagiarism’, and ‘digital privacy’. Common Sense has a great poster (see image below) that covers these through a discussion on when to put photos online. You can print it out or display it on the Smartscreen. Take your time. Solicit lots of input from students–like their experiences with online cyberbullies and Instagram, and what happens with their online-enabled Wii platforms. It can be their personal experience or siblings.

A note: The poster says it’s for middle and high school, but I use it with students as young as third grade by scaffolding and backfilling the discussion:

Build a digital citizen

If your Smartscreen still works, open a drawing canvas. You can use Paint, Photoshop, TuxPaint, KidPix, Google Apps’ Drawings, or another art program. You can even use an online whiteboard like Scriblink or A Web Whiteboard. If the Smartscreen–or your personal computer–doesn’t work, grab a marker and go old school using a big sheet of paper or the whiteboard.

Sketch out a generic child. Ask students what digital devices they use on a daily or weekly basis and draw those with arrows connecting the device to the child. This might include:

iPad
smartphone
earbuds
watch
Nintendo
???

Discuss the result with students.

Click here for an example (scroll to ‘What Students Use…’ free poster):

Computer hardware

Discuss the parts of the computer and how each is connected. Use your own system as an example, but include other digital devices. For example, if you use PCs at your school, discuss how the parts are the different/same as on Macs, Chromebooks, and iPads. Many students will have experience with other devices and be happy to share. Include monitor, screen, tower, keyboard, mouse, peripherals, headphones, webcam, as well as mouse parts (buttons and mouse wheel) and keyboard parts (F row and homerow).

Then, discuss hardware problem solving–i.e., if volume doesn’t work, what do you do (check headphones, mute, volume). Most hardware has easy-to-solve problems that students as young as kindergarten are capable of solving independent of adult intervention–if they know the solutions.

Click for a poster with typical hardware problems and solutions (scroll down toward bottom to How to Solve Hardware Problems).

While you’re on the subject of problem solving, poll students on how they solve problems. Do they ask a friend, an adult? Do they Google the answer? Experiment? What works and what doesn’t? Write down their answers on the Smartscreen and compare it to this rephrased list from Common Core problem solving strategies (click link and scroll to ‘Problem Solving‘ visual organizer):

Blank Keyboard assessments

There are two blank keyboard assessments I give every grading period. These are part of the keyboarding curriculum and help students get comfortable with key placement. Each takes only about ten minutes, but even that is difficult to scratch out of a busy schedule. Non-working computers is a perfect time to take care of these. Cover all the keyboards in the classroom and pass out paper copies of one or both of the blank keyboard assessments. give students ten to fifteen minutes working with a partner to fill in the keys. Students will be surprised how challenging this is. From then on, they’ll notice where keys are as they type.

Click for a sample of the blank keyboard assessment of letter keys (scroll down the page, toward the bottom):

Click for a sample of the blank keyboard assessment of non-letter keys:

Tech Challenge

Play a team challenge on tech skills. Take 10-15 minutes to collect questions from students on software, hardware, shortkeys, problem solving, online tools, vocabulary–everything they’ve covered so far this year. It can range from ‘How do you put a picture in a word processing program’ to ‘Which tool would you use to write a report?’ As they come up with questions, type them into a document which is displayed on the Smartscreen.

Once the list is complete, break students into groups and give them five minutes to strategize on how their team will compete. For example, only one voice can answer for the team so they must select a spokesperson. This avoids the confusion of two team members calling out different answers. While they organize, sort questions into topics, such as MS Word, Google Apps, Vocabulary, Problem solving, Internet.

Ready? Team #1 selects a category. Ask a question within that category. Give the team 5 seconds to answer. If they can’t, proceed to Team #2, but don’t repeat the question. If they can’t answer, move to Team #3 and then Team #4. Team #2 selects the next question. As you proceed, Teams must select from a category that hasn’t been used before. Score one point per correct answer. Students love this game. If I had time, I’d play it every grading period.

Here’s a sample of questions I include (click to zoom in):

Jeopardy

Have available a Jeopardy-style assessment you have prepared for exactly these sort of days. It can include the same sort of questions you collected for the Team Challenge. Here are links to several Jeopardy templates:

What do you do when you push Power and nothing happens? Any great ideas for us?

More on classroom management:

4 Subjects Every Teacher Must Teach and How

How to set up your tech classroom

18 Pluses, 5 Differences, and 9 Tips about Chromebooks in Your Classroom

–images copyrighted by AskaTechTeacher. Free to use with appropriate credit.

–article first appeared on TeachHUB

Jacqui Murray has been teaching K-8 technology for 15 years. She is the editor/author of dozens of tech ed resources including a K-8 technology curriculum, K-8 keyboard curriculum, K-8 Digital Citizenship curriculum, and dozens of books on how to integrate technology into education. She is webmaster for six blogs, CSG Master Teacher, an Amazon Vine Voice book reviewer, Editorial Review Board member for Journal for Computing Teachers, CAEP reviewer, CSTA presentation reviewer, freelance journalist on tech ed topics, a tech ed columnist for Examiner.com, and a weekly contributor to TeachHUB. You can find her resources at Structured Learning.

100 Videos and Counting: Lessons From a Flipped Classroom

Date October 26, 2015

Posted by Tim Mangia

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October 19, 2015

Joe Hirsch

Educator, Akiba Academy of Dallas

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Photo credit: Brad Flickinger via flickr (CC BY 2.0)

Seventeen months ago, I made my first flipped learning video. And then, unexpectedly, it happened: I crossed the century mark. That is to say, I made my hundredth video. What have I learned along the road between one and one hundred?

It’s not about the video.

I’ve said this before, but can’t repeat it enough: Teachers who embrace flipped learning need to think like architects, not video producers. It’s tempting to become enamored by content creation — after all, you want the lesson to hold visual appeal. But it’s a mistake to become overly invested in your video’s “wow factor” at the expense of instructional integrity. The critical component of flipped learning occurs in the classroom itself — how teachers pivot from the video’s baseline content to deeper, more expansive targets and make room for students to investigate, evaluate, and apply new knowledge in creative ways.

And then there’s the issue of coverage. Looking back, my first attempts at video creation misfired. Lessons stretched up to ten minutes. My visuals either overcrowded the content or stood sheepishly beside it. Over time, I honed my message, my delivery, and my coverage areas. Most of my “next generation” videos run between two and five minutes, the digital sweet spot. Ironically, the more I focused on learning outcomes, the better my videos became.

Don’t forget the data.

In the early days, I released video content to students through my YouTube channel and trusted that they would watch assigned lessons in time for class. Talk about a shot in the dark! The number of YouTube views couldn’t tell me whether one of my students actually tuned in, and it certainly didn’t reveal what students actually learned (or didn’t). So about three weeks into my flipped learning foray, I turned to Educanon, an award-winning hosting and delivery platform that helped me unlock a treasure trove of data. Using its intuitive interface, I began to embed quiz questions within the lesson (with forced stops that prompted answers), and that helped me track student progress. The data trail gave me insight into student learning and oversight of the learning process — how to structure a child’s learning plan based on his or her responses to questions during the video. Possessing this information is vital to designing a right-sized learning experience when students return to class.

Flip outside the box.

Flipped learning is a powerful tool for classroom learning, but why stop there? The possibilities can be endless. This year, I flipped Back-to-School Night by releasing a video preview of classroom procedures to parents several days before we met (in some ways similar to my class procedures video that I sent to my students a few days before the first day of school). The flipped format allowed parents to chew over the information and generate questions and concerns ahead of time. When they arrived, I created a parking lot for them to leave individual questions for follow-up (Post-It notes on a white board works well), which preempted that doomsday scenario where one domineering parent hijacks the entire evening with a personal rant. By clearing technical details off the deck, we spent more time engaged in nobler discussions about educational philosophy, social-emotional learning, and long-term goals. There are lots of other ways for teachers and administrators to flip outside the box, including:

Faculty meetings: Communicate all that administrivia ahead of time and use the space for deeper conversations about teaching and learning.

Parent-teacher conferences: Prepare learner profiles that offer evidence of student learning and skill-development (Ourboox provides a free, simple platform for making beautiful e-books), then dive into a detailed performance analysis in the conference space.

Informational sessions: Whether it’s news about the athletics program or the school uniform, try moving the technical details online (using a screencast platform like Screenr or Screencast-O-Matic to show visuals), and then host a forum at the school where students can run drills with the new coach or see a fashion show of the new uniform. The live events, which can be bundled around existing back-to-school engagements, are great showcasing opportunities that make the drab details pop.

Plan backward and give notice.

No matter how amazing we think our lessons might be, they will never compete with after-school basketball practice, piano lessons, tennis clinic, or the host of other extra-curriculars that students enjoy. I learned early on to give significant lead time for students to watch lessons, releasing new content about 3-4 days prior to the in-class application. This forced me to plan backward from a target date and stick to a fairly regimented creation schedule. That made for lots of long nights, but ultimately held me accountable to a delivery system that honored the busy lives of kids outside of school. I also made sure to keep parents in the loop about upcoming new content and due dates through Remind, a communication service that alerts parents to classroom currents. Students can’t be expected to apply knowledge that they never learned!

Good teaching is still number one.

Now more than ever, it’s clear to me that good technology will never replace good teaching. In fact, professional teaching is one of the pillars of flipped learning, a testament to the role that teachers play in helping students define, discern, and discuss new knowledge as it flows across the information highway. In two years of flipping my classroom, I’ve become more attuned to the habits and hallmarks of effective instruction. That’s not to say that educators need to embrace flipped learning as pedagogical salvation, but that the process of planning for and executing a flipped learning experience requires vast amounts of rigor, foresight, deep instructional knowledge, creativity, and risk-taking. For teachers, flipped learning is exhilarating and exasperating all at once — not because it replaces the act of teaching, but because it releases its most essential parts.

Crossing into triple digits, I feel like I’m just starting to appreciate the possibilities of this model. One thing’s for sure — unless it’s designed for better outcomes, flipped learning is just plain upside down. But done right, I believe that it can turn the educational system on its head.

PBS Learning Media Launches Free iPad App for Students, Updates Learning Media Service

Date October 20, 2015

Posted by Tim Mangia

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By Leila Meyer
10/07/15

PBS LearningMedia, the on-demand media service for K-12 classrooms, has added new features and tools, and the company has also launched a free iPad app for students.

The new PBS Students app offers videos, games and images from PBS and PBS Kids, including resources from Nova, Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood and the Ken Burns collection, as well as thousands of other resources covering math, science, English language arts, social studies and other subject areas. According to the company, the app is designed to complement the PBS LearningMedia Student portal, which launched earlier this year.

New features and tools added to the PBS LearningMedia service are intended to make it easier for teachers to implement the company’s digital media resources in the classroom. They include:

Puzzle Builder, which lets teachers create interactive word searches and crossword puzzles that can be printed, or that students can complete on a computer or tablet;
Quiz Maker, which lets teachers create online short answer, essay, multiple choice, fill-in-the-blank or true/false quizzes;
Lesson Builder, which lets teachers combine digital resource from PBS LearningMedia with their own content;
Tools for teachers to build their own digital content and share it with other educators;
Quick Assign, which is designed to make it easier for teachers to assign or share resources in the PBS LearningMedia library; and
A new curriculum calendar and events guide to help teachers access free professional development opportunities.

One of the company’s upcoming professional development events is the third annual Get Your Tech On program, which includes a series of webinars on topics such as using digital media resources, implementing 1-to-1 technology and integrating game-based learning in the classroom.

Additional information about new PBS LearningMedia tools and features, the PBS Student app and professional development events can be found on the PBS LearningMedia site, and the PBS Students app is available as a free download from the App Store.

25 STEM Education Apps You Need in 2015

Date October 15, 2015

Posted by Tim Mangia

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As the new year approaches, the thought on everyone’s mind is how to make 2015 even more interactive, educational, and engaging for STEM students than the past year. Indeed, it has become a national priority to develop new ways to entice students to STEM careers and offer engaging ways to teach STEM that dismantles old and less-effective learning methods. From flipped learning to incorporating Learning Management Systems (LMS), to augmented reality, teachers are talking about how to keep moving STEM education forward.

According to a recent Teachercast article, 5 EdTech Trends Changing Education for the Longterm, one of the biggest trends for 2015 will be the incorporation of more apps into classroom curriculum including gamification, collaboration, self-learning and assessment apps. Terry Heick (@terryheick) at TeachThought echoed similar sentiments in his post 30 Trends in Education Technology for 2015 while pointing out the challenges of technology integration:

“Schools are getting better at thinking tech-first (not in terms of priority, but design). But they are still struggling to meaningfully integrate edtech at the learning model and curriculum level.“

Apps are potentially powerful learning tools, but good scientists are not made by apps alone — fostering collaboration and critical thinking is key to successful STEM learning, as it should also be in STEM-learning technology. Just check out Bill Church‘s recent edSurge article, How Edtech Tools Have Revved Up 21st Century STEM Instruction, for further evidence of how much technology is changing STEM education. Notes Church, “To me, the most exciting thing that I am now seeing with technology use in my classes is the blending of tools together.“

So, keeping all of this fantastic information in mind, we present the best, boldest, and brightest STEM edtech apps (many of which are free, a few of which you may already be using) that will keep your students ready to “rock the STEM” for another amazing year!

TECHNOLOGY (CODING)

1. MIT App Inventor (Grades 6-12)

Devices: Android / Price: Free / Twitter: @MITAppInventor

What could be more perfect to start our app extravaganza than an app that lets you create more apps? This new, web-based program from MIT is a simple way to teach students how to create their own apps, offering fantastic additional supports for teachers. From the 6-week training course in app-creation, to the online educator’s forum and Verizon Innovative App Challenge, you can put your school on the map and get your students excited about maker-motivated science!

2. Hopscotch (Grades 4-6)

Devices: iPad, iPhone / Price: FREE / Twitter: @Hopscotch

As a winner of both the 2013 Parent’s Choice Award and 2014 Best Educational Technology Award, this STEM education app just seems to be getting better with time. This most recent version, the Hour of Code Edition, is a perfect introduction to coding for younger grade students. With the rules students learn in this game (like sequencing, abstraction, values, and conditionals), they are able to create games, animation, and art. An excellent, free game that is highly reviewed by both parents and digital tech teachers.

3. Lightbot (Grades 6-12)

Devices: All / Price: $2.99 / @lightbotcom

According to Graphite.com, “Light-bot…was developed for kids by an undergraduate student who’s been coding since he was a kid himself.” As such, this student-centered, STEM education app teaches computer programming concepts through puzzles and problem-solving tasks. Students move a robot through a maze by using programming commands, Boolean Logic, and conditionals. This is a fun, game-based way to teach students the basics of programming. Also, check out the Hour of Code Special Online Edition!

ASTRONOMY / SPACE SCIENCE

4. Pocket Universe (6-12, College Level)

Devices: iPhone, iPad / Price: $2.99 / Twitter: @CraicDesign

This is the ultimate astronomy app that allows you to learn while you stargaze. It was also voted Best Education iPhone App by AppAdvice, as well as being an Apple App Staff Store Favorite. As a science teacher, or parent of a science student, this is a perfect, no-stress way to teach astronomical concepts in a beautiful and simple way. You can take virtual tours of all the bodies in our solar system, read the most recent astronomical news, and much more.

5. Stephen Hawking’s Snapshots of the Universe (Grades 4-12)

Devices: iPad / Price: $4.99 / Twitter: @RH_Digital

This versatile, multimedia app was selected by the Apple App Store as one of the “Best of 2014 for iPad,” mainly due to its stunning graphics and unparalleled science knowledge base. The app includes 10 astronomy-based science experiments that include video, audio, and interactive elements. Students not only learn astronomy, but basic physics – and it all comes from the brilliant mind of Stephen Hawking. Game-based science education doesn’t get any better than this!

6. NASA Visualization Explorer (Grades 2-12, College Level)

Devices: iPhone, iPad / Price: FREE / Twitter: @NASAViz

NASA (one of our awesome partners in STEM) is the hub of all astronomy science knowledge. This is a visual collection of all their space research – from the moon landings to the outer edges of the Kuiper Belt. One of the app reviews enthusiastically states that this STEM education app is “Without a doubt, one of the best apps ever…Reminded me why I was so interested in space exploration!” As a teacher or parent, this is a necessary tool for talking about the solar system, space exploration, and global climate shift.

MATH

7. Get the Math (Grades 7-10)

Devices: Web / Price: FREE / Twitter: @GetTheMath

A great platform that answers that tired question: “When will I ever need to know Alegebra?” By mixing videos, web interaction, and real-world scenarios, Get the Math shows middle and high school students how Algebra really does apply to their lives. Professionals in the fashion, sports, and special effects industries explain how they use math daily, and set up situations for students to solve. The best part about this math education app is that the situations all use notable, real people like chef Sue Torres and special effects artist Jeremy Chernick. For more real-life examples of “math in action”, check out our post on Rex Moribe, Engineering Superheroes: How a Math Program Turned a Surfer Kid Into a 21st Century Problem-Solving Whiz.

8. DragonBox 5+ (Grades 1-5)

Devices: All devices and Web / Price: $4.99 / @DragonBoxApp

Touted as the game that “secretly teaches algebra,” this math education app has won a number of significant awards for children’s educational games. Children from ages 5 and up can play an increasingly complex series of math-related games that teach algebraic rules and get them comfortable working with variables. Jinny Gudmunson of USA Today called it, “Brilliant. Kids don’t even know that they’re doing math.” This game is so much fun, it is a must-have for any teacher or parent who wants to give their student a head start in STEM concepts.

9. Mathalicious (Grades 5-8)

Devices: Web / Price: $185/teacher/year or Pay What You Can / Twitter: @Mathalicious

In order to create the next generation of scientists and entrepreneurs, it is vital to get them excited about math during the formative middle school years. Mathalicious is not only real-world based math, but it’s interactive and aligned with the CCSS. This online math education app puts students into fun, relevant situations (like learning through “The Biggest Loser,” or how to determine how much a Wii should sell for), and teaches them how to use middle and high school math to solve their problem. The best part? There is a novel, pay-what-you-can structure so that it is affordable for almost any teacher.

COLLABORATION & ASSESSMENT

10. WeLearnedIt (K-12)

Devices: iPad / Price: Free, $10/month, $995/year / Twitter: @WeLearnedItApp

This brand new STEM education app (launched in August 2014), provides a dynamic way to share assignments, track student learning, and organize student work. This is a must-have app for 1-to-1 iPad classrooms, as it allows teachers to monitor each iPad in their class on a number of levels. They can also upload rubrics, edit and share curriculum tracks, and create project-based assignments including files from external sources. Students and teachers can manage and make comments on their work through individual portfolios, making it easy to share progress with parents and other professional supports.

11. Kahoot (Grades K-12)

Devices: All / Price: FREE / Twitter: @GetKahoot

This cloud-based classroom management system is a great way to incorporate gamification in your STEM classroom. With this app, teachers can create quizzes and activities called “Kahoots.” Then, Kahoot makes it easy to do quiz-style games, with students chiming in from their personal devices. In addition, students can ask questions during a lesson or activity, which makes them more likely to interact with the information being presented. This is a must-have app, not only because it is so fun and exciting for students (and teachers!), but because the analytics available allow you to manage your students’ learning and progress so easily – and from any device.

12. Educreations Interactive Whiteboard (Grades 6–12)

Devices: iPad / Price: FREE, $11.99/month, $1495/year / Twitter: @educreations

From the innovative and interactive team at Edmodo, get ready for a stress-free alternative to purchasing an interactive whiteboard. Much like the in-the-classroom whiteboard, both teachers and students can create presentations, interactive activities, and assessments easily. Yet, this online whiteboard doesn’t require the huge up-front investment. This is a great STEM education app for incorporating project-based learning curriculum and interactive presentations.

EARTH SCIENCE

13. Project Noah (Grades 4-12)

Devices: All / Price: FREE / Twitter: @projectnoah

This app not only teaches physical science and biology concepts, but civic responsibility and journalism. Students can contribute to this crowdsourced nature journal of flora and fauna simply by taking pictures of the world around them. You and your class can also join group or global missions (did we mention it’s social?) to gain information for particular research goals. One of the best parts of this app is the “active user community,” which gives your students a great forum to talk science with professionals and novices around the world.

14. Science through Photography (Grades 3-6)

Devices: Android, iPad / Price: $3.99 / Twitter: @AlexDJones

In this app, students are able to view high-resolution images and connect their visual experience to science concepts. Developed to appeal to the three basic learning styles, students can manipulate the images, listen to the lessons, and view the images simultaneously to get a deeper understanding of earth science. This is a perfect app for creating multi-sensory lesson plans and modifying science concepts for high-needs students.

15. Earth-Now Jet Propulsion Laboratory App (5-12)

Devices: All / Price: FREE / Twitter: @NASAJPL

This is the one science education app in the pantheon of interactive NASA options that focuses on the earth’s atmosphere and health. Through a series of color-coded maps, this app shows the surface air temperature of the earth, gaseous levels, and other global climate data. Also, check out some of the other apps from NASA, including Space Place Prime – a daily online magazine with space and earth-related news.

ENGINEERING & MAKERS

16. Sound Uncovered (Grades 3-12)

Devices: iPad / Price: FREE / Twitter: @exploratorium

This impressive app is an interactive tool that teach students (and future sound engineers of the world!) about acoustic phenomena, auditory illusions, and sound-processing. Your students can do virtual experiments and look at fantastic images of how sound works. It includes supporting videos and webcasts to deepen the inquiry. Teachers who have used the book have given rave reviews, like, “Every page includes exploration, investigation, and reading text. Information is clearly presented and scientifically sound.”

17. Instructables (Grades 6-12)

Devices: All, Web / Price: FREE, $47.40/year, $69.95/2 years / Twitter: @instructables

For hands-on inquiry science, Instructables is a great source for cool projects that will inspire and guide kids. This community of user-created projects aren’t limited to science alone, but include a huge repertoire of physical science, biology, and food science activities (many of which are created by students). You can also get involved in education groups and send messages to other teachers or parents. This is a great all-around resource for any STEM supporter.

18. Robots for iPad (Grades 6-12)

Devices: iPad / Price: FREE / Twitter: @robotsapp

Touted by many (including the New York Times, Wired, The New Yorker, and many others) as the best robotics app on the market, this mobile app from IEEE Spectrum Magazine is the go-to for students who are interested in robotics. In it, students can explore over 150 different robots from 19 countries. They’ll love the stunning visuals – with 360° views, video tutorials, and high-interest articles to support the experiential learning. Not only is it an award-winning science education app, but it’s free, which makes it one of our top picks on the list!

GENERAL SCIENCE

19. Next Generation Science Standards and Common Core State Standards (Grades K-12)

Devices: All / Price: FREE / Twitter: @MasteryConnect

Publisher Mastery Connect has placed the planning power right into the palm of your hand with this informative and functional app. Teachers and parents can now view the Standards in one app, in the palm of their hand. Teachers can also organize lessons by conceptual progression and topic, or use the domains model. The Common Core State Standards app, also published by Mastery Connect offers a similar experience but for Common Core State Standards. The CCSS app has frameworks for both traditional and integrated Math standards, much like the most recent version of the IMP curriculum from IAT. Whether you want the Math or Science standards, Mastery Connect is the perfect app developer to keep your kids on track in 2015.

20. Anatomy 4D Google App (Grades 9-12, College Level)

Devices: Android, iPhone, iPad / Price: FREE / Twitter: @DAQRI

If your students have ever wondered why people get sick, or if you include medical and health inquiry into your science curriculum (like our PBIS unit, “Good Friends and Germs”), this is a great tool to help them their questions through inquiry and discovery into the human body – up close and personal! In this app, students print any of the 2D images from the publisher’s website and then scanning it with their device. Instantly, they have an anatomy lab that allows an intimate understanding of the human body. One parent said about the app, “Everyone I’ve shown this to, loves it – including younger kids and even my daughter in medical school! The ability to really closely inspect any aspect of human anatomy is incredible.”

21. DIY Nano (Grades K-5)

Devices: iPad, iPhone / Price: FREE / Twitter: @SWNISENet

This is a great app for hands-on teachers and parents who want to introduce nanotechnology to their students in a fun and simple way. Each lesson has step-by-step instructions, a list of easy-to-find materials, and support videos to show you how to accomplish the experiments’ goals. Developed by the NISE Network and funded by the NSF, this free app allows young students to learn complex nanotechnology concepts very quickly. In addition, since the app requires adult supervision, it can be a great way to provide one-on-one science instruction.

22. Algodoo (Grades 4-12)

Devices: Android, iPad, Mac, Windows / Price: FREE / Twitter: @algodoo

Description: Algodoo mixes the concepts of a sandbox and laboratory so that students can create their own physics questions and discover the laws that govern gravity, magnetism, and light. Teachers can use the built-in lessons, which feature reflection and assessment options, or create simple labs and tutorials that can be duplicated by students at a later time. Teachers love this app because it really gives students a hands-on experience with physics. One teacher commented, “Algodoo’s science lessons feature built-in prediction and reflection questions to help players think through what they’re learning instead of just following directions.”

23. Labster (9-12, College Level)

Devices: Web / Price: $7.99 per lab, $29.99/student/year (high school), $49,99/student/semester (college) / Twitter: @labster

A recent study published in Nature Biotechnology showed that regularly using this app in the classroom actually increased learning outcomes by more than 70%. This web-based app focuses on teaching biotechnology and microbiology, specifically to perform labs that are too expensive or unsafe for a traditional lab setting. Best of all, the app is inquiry-based, meaning that students can make mistakes, hone their hypotheses, and learn the underlying concepts in a very organic way.

24. The Radix Endeavor (Grades 8-12)

Devices: Web, Windows, Mac / Price: FREE / Twitter: @radixendeavor

The Radix Endeavor was collaboratively designed by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, MIT, and Filament Games to be an innovative way to get students excited about math and science. Students adventurously navigate their way through the island of Ysola, solving both math and science problems in order to win. As an added bonus, the online game website offers teachers tools for incorporating the game into the larger class curriculum structure. You can also learn more about the research backing the game’s development process and specific learning outcomes.

25. News-o-Matic School Edition 2014-2015 (Grades 1-4)

Devices: iPhone, iPad, Android / Price: $9.99 / Twitter: @News_O_Matic

This non-fiction reading app was launched in early 2014 as a way for educators to support their curriculum with reading practice. The School Edition provides five CCSS-aligned stories each day, with additional extension activities and quizzes. News-O-Matic also incorporates writing exercises, which is perfect for schools that promote cross-curricular content support. Although it’s not specifically a STEM app, there is a wealth of great science and math activities and stories. News-O-Matic is a great tool for teaching students how to discovery the science in non-science news and to question and discuss how science impacts real news. Great for promoting science literacy.

What Do You Think?

Whether you’re a parent, teacher, or administrator, these apps are a great investment in your students’ STEM learning in the classroom and at home. From math and science fundamentals, to robots and nanotechnology, there is something for every kiddo (and even adults) to get excited about.

Are there any must-have STEM apps that we missed in this list? Share your thoughts and classroom-tested suggestions in the comment section below!

The value of student and teacher input in EdTech

Date October 15, 2015

Posted by Tim Mangia

Comments0

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A guest post by Garrett Zimmer

OK so I’ve been wanting to ask this question lately. Who do we lean on for input and advice when we have to teach or create something? Maybe advice isn’t the right word, perhaps I’d rather use perspective.

What stakeholders are we looking to for their perspective when designing a project, a lesson, a company, or technology? As teachers, leaders, or even team members do we put stake in the perspective of everyone, or are we dismissive of some perspectives simply because they don’t hold a specific degree or level of experience. I’ve had my share of high growth leadership experiences and I’ve found some of the best results and insights seeded from the most unlikely sources.

Let me briefly share my example. During the very beginning of my 1st career in Sales and Marketing I sat in a strange and unique position. I believed I was gifted, charismatic, intelligent, and I even outsold most of my co-workers with years of sales experience. My youth gave me little credibility, in spite of the fact that I’d been professionally selling since the age of 7. See I grew up in a very religious organization where going door to door selling bible philosophy for hours each week was the norm. I experienced rejection, learned and honed abilities in ice-breaking and relating to people’s needs, but my unique perspective and experience went unrecognized, till a few years in when my talents were noticed by a great manager.

See it’s very easy to seek out someone’s views if they come with a degree, or 50 years of experience, and quite honestly I think those views should hold much more weight. But are we just as apt to dismiss the views of someone else a little lighter in experience?

Let’s take a step into the EdTech and general Startup landscape though. Market research and understanding your market is so important for startups and getting it wrong can have devastating impact. I’ve seen and heard of countless companies fail a launch or cost themselves so much by putting out a product that just failed to meet the needs of their intended target market. I’ve also seen many companies launch a product and spend their marketing dollars targeting one segment, and a year later shift their marketing to a whole different audience because it turns out that the product is actually perfect for the later.

It’s easy to take a top level approach when designing a piece of software, a tool, or a business product and say Who’s Buying this, let me appeal to them. Who’s backing this, or investing in it, let me appeal to them. However, are we forgetting about who is using this? I remember my good friend Shawn Q, a clinical informatics specialist, told me a story of the E-Health Management system that went over budget by something like 500% because it just didn’t work for the ground floor nurses who were supposed to be using it. This is directly resulting from not keeping the end user in the loop and conversation.

EdTech and the Education market though is so much more complex. Education is so directly tied to every level of our lives that the stakeholders are vast and varied. Governments, Administrators, Lobbyists, Employers, Post Secondary Institutions Teachers, Parents and Students are all Key Stakeholder groups with a public and personal interest. Of course with so many voices in the discussion, efficiency dictates that emphasis be placed on those who pay the bills. The Administrators, the Governments, and the Institutions. I advocate for that voice as a strong part of the equation in the hopes that that voice resonates the needs of the rest. But even further I support the importance of actually connecting with each stakeholder group, to make sure nothing is missing.

Some Educational tech companies seem reluctant to drive their business with Teachers and Students in mind, and instead pay homage to their own vision of what is good and right and effective. In everything from connectivity to compatibility and even down to price modeling, some still fail to match their offering to meet the needs of the people using it. Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not disparaging. There are many that build Advisory Groups and speak with Teachers, and Administrators and the Thought Leaders with years and years of experience. And I do the same in my development. But how many are going to the students, to the brand new fresh out of college teachers to see what their perspective is?

What a thought Garrett, you’re CRAZY! Ask an uneducated student to give insight on a project that they can’t even begin to understand the complexity of designing, much less the complexity of the market. Wait! Ask a teacher who just stepped out of college and doesn’t understand what it’s really like in the classroom yet? CRAZY! All you would get is kids that want every game ever made loaded into the software, and teachers who want the price to be free. I say “so what!” Yes you’re going to get some of that, but you will also get a wealth of information that adds amazing value for that group. And perhaps that’s the value add, that really makes your product stand out and help millions of students and teachers.

I’m a Kid Friendly YouTube Content Creator and I can tell you 100% that there are some really amazing and intelligent kids out there who know what they want. My interactions around my own EdTech startup company with Teachers and thought leaders, both inexperienced and experienced, have yielded such amazing insights into what they need and want. By working closely with a diverse group of end users, designing for them, my product has become theirs as much as ours. I strongly believe that by keeping all the stakeholders in the conversation, our product will solve real teacher and student concerns.

So if you’re a Teacher, an Administrator, or even an EdTech Startup yourself and are not regularly in the trenches to talk with the day to day soldiers, you’re likely missing valuable information that could make you more successful. To reword a Famous President’s mantra: “And so, my fellow leaders – ask not what you can do for students and teachers, ask what they can do for you.”

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Garrett Zimmer is an experienced entrepreneur, speaker, and leader with a background in business and a passion for educational leadership. Garrett has been awarded a Parliamentary Citation from the Government of Canada and various honors for his work with educational boards and councils across Ontario Canada. He continues to advocate and work for the future of students everywhere in the educational sector. Garrett has spent the past 10 years as an entrepreneur and runs a popular Kid Friendly Youtube Entertainment Channel called PBJellyGames.

If you’d like to learn more about Garrett or MineGage, follow him on twitter: @PBJellyGames or visit the Minegage website www.minegage.com.

Clip Converter – Download youtube videos

Date October 9, 2015

Posted by Tim Mangia

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Clip converter is a free, unblocked website from which you can download youtube videos and clips to your computers. Now that we put everything in the OneDrive we have almost an infinite amount of space. It is easy to do. Some videos have restrictions and they will not work

Click link below for full instructions

clip converter